Erdogan: Turkey to snub Libya conference if Greece, Cyprus or Israel participate

Turkey will not attend an international conference on Libya in Paris on November 12 if Greece, Israel or Cyprus are invited, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said, according to Turkish media.

Speaking to Turkish journalists on his return from the G20 in Rome on Sunday, Erdogan reportedly said he had informed French counterpart Emmanuel Macron that this was a “condition” for Ankara.

“If these countries are to attend the conference, then there is also no need to send special representatives,” he was quoted as saying.

 According to France24, the aim of the conference is to ensure that Libyan elections are held on schedule on the 24th of December and to discuss the departure of foreign forces and mercenaries on order to put an end to a decade long civil war.

The UN previously estimated there were some 20,000 mercenaries and foreign fighters in Libya, including Russians from the private security company Wagner, Chadians, Sudanese and Syrians. Several hundred Turkish soldiers are present in Libya under a bilateral agreement with the previous government in Tripoli.